Abstract:

The research aimed to explore two shifts to emergency remote teaching Ukrainian universities experienced with a focus on the online platforms, tools and their functional features used at Uzhhorod National University. Emergency remote teaching is viewed as an unplanned response to external dramatic changes which involves organisational changes. The effectiveness of instruction depends on academics’ prior experinece and digital competences, on the one hand, and the ability to make them compatible with a new teaching environment, on the other. In particular, by examining three periods of teaching (prior to the COVID-19 emergency remote teaching shift, the COVID-19 shift, and Russia-Ukraine war shift), the study examined the use of online tools and platforms for teaching-related purposes and established trends that were displayed during two emergency remote teaching shifts. The research used an online survey questionnaire as a method for data collection. The survey was conducted in March-April 2022 and involved 81 academics from two faculties at Uzhhorod National University: the Faculty of Foreign Philology and the Faculty of Biology. The results indicate that the intensity of use of online platforms and tools by academics increases during the periods under study with regard to the number and diversity of online tools and their functional features. Online platforms and tools should be selected taking into consideration specialty and its specific aspects in terms of content, assessment and classroom management.

Keywords:

Emergency remote teaching, online teaching, online platform, online tool.